Don’t miss this installment of Joni Eareckson Tada’s “Heart of the Founder” series where Joni digs into the topic of healing. Imagine you’re an athletic, ambitious teenager looking forward to starting college. It’s a hot day at the beach. On a whim, you plunge into the water and your neck snaps as your head hits the sandy bottom. Life will never be the same… 

After her diving accident, Joni recalls fervently asking God for healing—to walk again and regain use of her hands; to get out of bed on her own. Poring over stories of Jesus miraculously healing people, Joni waited for her miracle healing. But God had something different in mind for her.

Joni had good reason to believe that God would heal her after her accident. She looked at Scriptures like Matthew 7:9–11 where God promises good gifts to his children. Wasn’t a healed spine a good gift? 

Why, more than five decades later, still in a wheelchair living with quadriplegia, can Joni attest to the fact that God has deeply healed her? It’s because, over years of Bible reading and trusting in Jesus, Joni began to see the heart healing and powerful purpose God intended for her—all while living with paralysis. Joni still hasn’t walked again, squeezed her husband’s hand, or gotten up in the morning on her own. But a deep and lasting healing is hers, through the power of the Lord Jesus.

KEY QUESTIONS:

Where in your life do you need healing?

Might God want to heal you in a way you don’t expect, or maybe wouldn’t choose?

KEY SCRIPTURES:

Matthew 7:9–11: “‘Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!’”

Isaiah 55:8–9: “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways.’”

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on  Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Founded by Joni Eareckson Tada, we provide Christ-centered care through Joni's House, Wheels for the World, Retreats and Getaways, and disability ministry training.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.